Braxton Cook’s Leading Jazz’s Newest Wave
There’s a new wave of jazz rising across the United States. Spurred on by young players determined to take the best from past masters and update it for the 21st century with their own flourishes, skills, and ideas. Harlem’s Braxton Cook is on the leading edge of that wave, using his alto sax and natural singing voice to explore new directions in jazz, drawing rave reviews and dedicated fans in the process. O.N.S traveled up to Harlem earlier this month to meet with Braxton, talk about growing up in Maryland, transferring from Georgetown to Juilliard, and his plans for the future. 
How’d you get into playing an instrument? Was there a certain moment that sparked that interest?
I was always attracted to the horns when I’d listen to recordings on the radio or in church. But I believe the first time I came into contact with the saxophone was around the age of five. My dad wanted to try a new hobby for his birthday, so my mom rented him a saxophone. He let me and my brothers come try to blow a note on the horn and I was the only one that could get a good tone on the horn. After that, I just hung by him to watch him practice and I remember being enamored with the physical appearance of the horn, the timbre of the sax, and the melodies he was practicing. Later on, in school, everyone joined band or orchestra class. I joined band and I signed up to play saxophone.
Why’d you chose the alto saxophone? What made it stand out from other instruments?
Honestly, I was a pretty small kid, so the Alto Saxophone was the only saxophone that I could physically play and carry at 10 years old.
You live in Harlem, one of the country’s true jazz meccas. How does Harlem inspire your music?
Historically, Harlem was a hub for all of the forward thinking Black musicians, artists, poets, and thinkers. Langston Hughes, James Baldwin, Duke Ellington, and so many other incredible Black minds helped to create a movement that elevated Black consciousness. I aspire to be a part of that lineage. I want to create music—honest music—that has a depth that reaches back to the predecessors that helped to create this music. Also, a lot of my musician friends live in Harlem, so it’s a great place to collaborate and create music.
Not only do you play sax, you sing as well. Was singing always an element in your music? Or were you strictly focusing on just playing sax from the beginning?
Singing was always something that I did when I was young. I use to sing at church and in middle school I did theatre. However, in high school I began to focus mostly on the saxophone and academics. At Juilliard, my major was Jazz Saxophone so I mostly just focused on Saxophone. It really wasn’t until I graduated that I got back to using my voice. It’s now become an integral part of my writing process. Whether I’m composing instrumental jazz compositions, RnB songs, or horn arrangements I start with singing melodies.
You mentioned that you’re not originally from New York. Where did you grow up and what attracted you to New York City?
I’m originally from the Maryland. I grew up in Greenbelt there and then moved to Atlanta for middle school and then went back to Maryland but lived in Silver Spring for high school. I did a couple years at Georgetown University in D.C. studying English and African American Studies. During that time, I spent most nights playing clubs in D.C., earning my stripes. After a while though, I knew I needed to get to New York in order to get to that next level musically. So I applied to transfer to Juilliard so that I could be surrounded by some of the best musicians in the world. I ended up getting in and receiving a full scholarship. So I left for New York and never looked back.
Your album No Doubt, just came out last year. How long did it take for you to put it together and release it? Has it been well received in the jazz world?
Well, the year before I put out No Doubt, I released Somewhere in Between in 2017. So between April 2017 and January 2018, I wrote most of the music for No Doubt. Since releasing that, the reception has been great! The album debuted at number 2 on iTunes Jazz and got over 1 million streams on Spotify in it’s first month out. We did a 10 day European Tour to support that project in the fall of 2018 as well and played to packed crowds at jazz clubs and jazz festivals in London, Amsterdam, Munich, and Paris.
It seems like you’re helping pioneer this neo-jazz genre that’s happening now. How do you feel about that sort of label?
To be honest, I don’t really like labels. I prefer to just make honest music. In my opinion, the music is either good or it isn’t. But labels and stuff are becoming less and less relevant these days.
Is there anyone that you would like to collaborate with in the near future?
I would love to collaborate with Anderson .Paak, Smino, NoName, Nick Hakim, Emily King, Terrace Martin, Robert Glasper, or Thundercat. There are so many it’s hard to name them all.
Can you tell us about any projects that are coming up this year?
I’m working on an EP of remixes of certain tracks from No Doubt. I plan on releasing that sometime this spring. Also, I’m always working on new music. So expect some singles to come out 2019!!
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